Despite the slight from Colby, Harrison remained undeterred. He crouched down, speaking earnestly to the dog. "You're clever, and you hold your own when it counts. But the world out there is harsh right now. You'll need to grow stronger if you want to protect yourself—and the ones you care about." "Mhm, mhm," Nadia agreed, gently scratching the dog's head in an attempt to ease the tension. "Colby, you'll protect me, won't you?" Colby's gaze shifted back and forth between the two humans. He had grown fond of his current caretaker and the people on this floor, especially since they had just shared a bowl of warm pork soup with him. But what if he didn't get stronger? Would he be cast aside, left to face the cruel fate of the dog meat market? The thought lingered in his mind, nudging him toward a reluctant acceptance. With a soft sigh, Colby nestled his head into Nadia's chest, silently pledging to protect her. She wouldn't abandon him, would she?"Don't worry," Nadia reassured him, her voice soothing. "We're only separated by a wall. We'll see each other whenever we want." Later, back at her apartment, Nadia rummaged through the pantry, finding half a bag of dog food to hand over to Harrison. "Colby's smart, but he holds grudges, and he's a bit stubborn. If he acts up, don't scold or hit him. Just let me know, and I'll take care of it." Harrison chuckled, a mix of amusement and disbelief crossing his face. "What do you think I am?" With that, the exchange was complete. One hand passed Colby off while the other took Lily back into her care. Lily seemed perfectly content, but Colby's expression was a dejected one. Once inside her apartment, Nadia opened Lily's backpack, discovering an assortment of children's learning books, crayons, and various supplies. It was clear that the items had been hastily gathered."Lily, have you ever been to preschool?" Nadia asked gently, curious but soft in her tone. Lily shook her head, nervously twiddling her fingers. "No, I haven't." The little girl, almost five years old, had never set foot in a preschool. When the topic came up, her earlier excitement seemed to fade into a quiet sadness. "Miss, am I dumb?" Lily asked, her head drooping. "Everyone else goes to school except for me." Nadia's heart softened, and she crouched down to meet the girl's gaze. "Of course not. You're one of the smartest," she said warmly, offering reassurance with every word. Although Nadia wasn't a professional teacher, she'd been tutoring high school students for years, helping them tackle the tough senior-year material until it became second nature. Teaching younger kids was new territory, but she wasn't afraid. She flipped through the introductory books, quickly sketching out a plan. She'd start with something simple—numbers. Arabic numerals, to be precise: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7…From 1 to 10, then from 11 to 20—Nadia guided Lily through each number, teaching her not only how to write them but also the patterns and logic behind counting. Though Lily had never set foot in a classroom, she'd picked up plenty from watching TV and chatting with others. For a child her age, she was quick to catch on, sitting attentively at the table as she carefully worked through each number. Harrison, thoughtful as ever, had even packed a small pencil case with pencils and erasers, covering every little detail. In under half an hour, Lily had memorized the numbers all the way to 100. Nadia smiled, rewarding her with a small piece of candy. "Lily, you did an amazing job." After tackling math, they moved on to language, beginning with letters and sounds. Lily took to it naturally, her bright eyes lighting up with each new letter and sound she mastered. Once the lesson wrapped up, Nadia assigned her a bit of homework, giving her a proud smile before settling on the couch. With Lily happily occupied, Nadia browsed articles on hydroponic gardening, eager to unlock the secrets of growing fresh greens indoors. Lily finished her homework but didn't leave, instead lingering in the cozy space while gently petting Dusty and Snowball, humming an alphabet song under her breath. When Harrison didn't come by to pick her up as usual, Nadia cooked up a bowl of instant noodles topped with slices of ham. The little girl's eyes lit up with delight, and she savored every bite. Later, as Nadia awoke from a light nap, she caught the faint sound of paws skittering back and forth. Curiously, she opened the door and saw Colby dashing down the corridor toward the rooftop staircase, darting in bursts of speed like a lightning bolt. At the far end of the hallway stood Harrison, gesturing at Colby with a steady, serious look. Though Colby clearly longed to run to his master's side, Harrison's firm signals left no room for that. The dog obediently continued his relentless sprints, never slowing. Nadia watched with a slight frown, feeling a touch of worry that such strict training might make Colby a bit too intense.Only after fifty rounds did Harrison finally signal him to stop. Colby slowed to a halt, tongue lolling as he panted, his body spent yet his eyes gleamed with energy. "No need to worry," Harrison reassured, crouching down to scratch behind Colby's ears. "Malinois are incredibly high-energy and built for endurance. A fifty-kilometer run wouldn't faze him in the slightest. Make him rest too much, and he'll only get restless." With training complete, he handed Colby a strip of jerky as a reward. But instead of eating it, Colby trotted over to Nadia, jerky clasped gently in his mouth, and set it down by her feet, as if to say, "This is my treat, but I want you to have it!" Nadia chuckled, touched by the gesture. "Alright, I'll keep it safe for you," she said warmly. Obedient as ever, Colby returned to Harrison's side, snapping to attention and then relaxing, a signal that his day's training was officially finished. At the handoff, Harrison glanced back and asked, "How's Lily doing with her studies?""Oh, she's doing great," Nadia replied. "She's memorized all the numbers under a hundred and knows her alphabet inside out. Go ahead and quiz her when you get home." Just as she was about to ask about Colby's training, a loud commotion drifted up from the lower floors, growing louder by the moment. Nadia stepped to the stairwell, looking down, and saw a group of people who had just returned from the flood shelter attempting to set up camp in the hallway. But it seemed every floor's residents were against it, refusing to let them settle in. With floodwaters rising steadily, the shelter had become unbearably overcrowded. Food was scarce, sleep nearly impossible, and people were forced to keep constant watch against theft or worse. Compared to that chaos, the hallways of their apartment building seemed like a peaceful haven. Yet the residents were understandably reluctant to let strangers occupy the halls. The disaster itself was bad enough without turning their corridors into makeshift camps, where people would inevitably cook, eat, and, worst of all, relieve themselves—an unsanitary and repulsive thought for everyone. They felt as if wolves lurked just beyond their doors, ready to invade, leaving everyone on edge. And with the typhoon still raging, this was hardly the first time people had tried to set up camp inside. After multiple incidents, the residents had grown wary, their goodwill exhausted by repeated betrayals. Rejected on each floor, the group of displaced residents climbed higher, eventually knocking on the seventeenth-floor stairwell door. The family from Unit 403 looked weary and unkempt, their sallow faces and grime-covered clothes enough to make anyone keep a distance. Some residents, it seemed, had managed to persuade them to head up to the eighteenth floor. Finding no other option, the family dropped to their knees, pleading, "Please, just let us stay by the rooftop door! We promise we won't be a bother to anyone!""It's no use begging me," Nadia replied firmly. "Mr. Thatcher, the elected building manager, is the one you should talk to. If he can't handle a matter as small as this, maybe it's time he rethinks his position." The 403 family wasn't slow to catch on. They returned to the thirteenth floor, standing their ground. "We've lived here over a decade. Let's see who's bold enough to move us out!" "If we're not allowed to stay here, then let Mr. Thatcher himself decide where we should go!" they called out. "Wherever he says, we'll go; otherwise, we're staying put." Within minutes, Hunter Thatcher, furious, arrived at the eighteenth-floor door, banging on it and demanding, "The family from 403 wants to stay by the rooftop door. Open up and let them through." But silence greeted him; the eighteenth floor was eerily still. Frustrated, he nearly kicked the door but held back, noticing the sharp iron spikes fixed to it. He had no choice but to swallow his anger and withdraw. With no floor willing to yield, the 403 family eventually settled on the thirteenth floor. Days turned into weeks as the floodwaters continued to rise. Under Nadia's careful care, the scabs on Colby's skin healed, his ribs no longer jutted out, and with Harrison's intense training regimen, his frame was beginning to show faint lines of muscle. Harrison had drilled a hole high up on the hallway wall and hung a rope from it, a tool to help Colby hone his jumping skills. With a running start, Colby would leap gracefully, clamping his jaws onto the rope and swinging back and forth like a pendulum. As long as Harrison didn't give the release command, Colby held on, gripping tightly. Nadia had to admit that while Harrison might not know much about raising kids, he had an undeniable knack for training dogs. Colby had mastered every standard command and gesture, and the two shared an unspoken understanding that a mere glance or shift of posture could convey. But the more she watched them, the more Nadia noticed that Colby and Harrison were beginning to resemble each other. There was a shared intensity in their eyes, a commanding energy between them. With a single look or subtle movement, they seemed to read each other's thoughts. Nadia felt a pang of jealousy; it was as if Harrison had whisked her beloved dog away right under her nose.